Actual vs Appearance
by Kage NoTenshi
Summary: The day seemed normal: go out, train, leave Anna to watch TV. But it was hardly anything normal, as Yoh discovered. [chapter five: Answers]
1. Discovery

Confusion is lovely.  Hence, this fic (though it won't be severely convoluted in the first chapter.)  Funny thing is, I saw boiya had said that she wished someone would do something with a similar storyline to what this will be.  I guess great minds think alike, because this had been a while in the making.  But, thanks to her, I decided to start posting.  ^_^  I think it will also be a number of different genres as the chapters go on, though not an extremely long fic.  

Disclaimer: I'll tell you a secret: I actually own Shaman King.  Problem is, the characters all like Hiroyuki Takei better, so they left me for him.  Sad, isn't it?

Actual vs. Appearance

            "There's nothing like a peaceful Sunday afternoon," decided Yoh with a smile.  His music was playing in one corner of the room, the day was warm, and all was quiet.  Content, he lay on his bed and closed his eyes to catch an extra nap, humming along with the music.  

            BANG.

            The door slammed open, startling him from his blissful reverie.  Anna stood in the doorway, a generally apathetic expression on her face.  "Did you get all the groceries for dinner?" she asked.

            "Yesterday, Anna."

            "Our cleaning supplies?"

            "I got another bucket yesterday, and we have enough of everything," he said.  

            "Training?"

            "I did it all this morning."

            She was quiet for a moment.  "Go out and run."

            "What??"  But she was already steering him out of his room and toward the yard.  

            "Run for two hours.  Then you can come back."

            "But…I already…"

            "No arguing," she went and turned on the TV as he sighed dejectedly and left, tripping on a stone on the sidewalk on his way out.  

            The temperature shot from pleasantly warm to oppressive as soon as he began to run at a decent pace.  The sweat was already starting to trickle down his face by the time the sounds of Anna's sitcom had faded away.

            An hour later, he passed a small park with a large spreading tree.  The shade looked seductively cool as the sun continued to beat down mercilessly.  As if to increase the appeal of the park, a cool breeze ruffled the leaves and Yoh felt his resistance melting.  He looked around quickly and then sat down with a happy sigh.  "Just for a little while," he told himself.  "Anna will never know…" he paused.  He glanced about again to make sure, but no one was in sight.  

            He smiled slightly to himself and lay back, lulled by the quiet of the day.  He closed his eyes to savor the feeling of nature around him.  

            He was floating in a blissful wonderland, admiring the cheerful neon colors.  To his joy, he discovered a pile of giant oranges, each as tall as he.  Eagerly, he managed to pull off a section of skin from one, spraying himself with a tangy mist of juice.  Mouth watering, he leaned forward for a bite.  But the orange wasn't there, and he was falling forward.  

            Yoh awoke suddenly with his face in the grass.  He sat up in a panic; he hadn't meant to fall asleep.  Anna would be furious if she found out he had been slacking off!  He jumped up and raced off; if he didn't make it home in time to cook dinner, he'd…well, he didn't want to think about what would happen to him.  

            Yoh made it home just on time, but only by sprinting all the way there.  To his surprise, Anna wasn't waiting impatiently by the door for him to start dinner.  He entered quietly, and went into the living room.  The TV was still playing, but Anna wasn't there.  In fact, Yoh noticed as he hit the power button, it was playing a show he knew she didn't care for.  He shrugged.  She must have started dinner on her own and forgotten to turn off the TV.  

            In that case, he decided, he could head upstairs for a shower before dinner.  Pulling off his shirt as he headed toward the stairs, it struck him as peculiar that even the kitchen was silent.  "She must be taking a nap," he told himself.  "I sure wish I could."  

            He was almost at the stairs when a streak of red on the kitchen floor caught his eye.  He sighed.  "Anna-chan must have left her headscarf lying around.  I guess I better pick it up.  I wish she'd learn to clean up after herself."  He covered his mouth suddenly, looking around and wishing he could take those rebellious words back.  Fortunately, an irate Anna did not materialize next to him, and he began to breathe again.  Slinging his shirt over his shoulder, he walked into the kitchen to retrieve Anna scarf.

            Only, he realized with a shock that it wasn't her scarf.  It wasn't even cloth at all.  It was a stream of fresh blood, trickling lackadaisically from a larger pool of crimson that had collected on the linoleum.

            And lying in the middle of the blood was Anna, her eyes closed and her wrists slashed open.

To be continued…

Well, continued if people actually care what happens.  So review!  ^_^


	2. A Ray of Hope and a Shadow

@_@  The reviews!  The _pressure!  _-_-  Now if have to make this story actually worth reading…  Blah.  Well, thanks guys.  ^_^  

Anyway, know what I realized?  If I don't finish the entire story before Monday, June 9th, you won't get the end of it until _August_!!  (I'm going traveling.  ^_^)  Oh well, as long as I don't get writer's block…  Oh, wait, I have houseguests coming!  -_-  Oh dear.

            For a little while, Yoh could do nothing but stare in horror at the body of his fiancée.  Then he rushed forward to look for any signs of life.  She was frighteningly pale, and for a moment, his shaking fingers failed to find a pulse.  It was there, however, weak and irregular, but certainly present.  His ear by her mouth, he felt the slightest brush of breath on his cheek.  

            But she refused to wake.  

            His next thought was to stop the blood that still trickled from her wrists, so grabbed his shirt to tear it to strips.  Unfortunately, it was a well-sewn shirt (courtesy of Anna), and he was in the middle of real life, not some crazy manga, so it refused to tear in his hands.  He gave up after a few seconds of frenzied struggling and ran to the hall closet for the first aid kit.  Pulling out some gauze, he pressed several squares of it to the wound, holding it down and then reaching for a long strip of the same material.  Then, carefully, he placed one end on her wrist and wrapped it firmly with the gauze.  He then propped her arm up on an overturned mixing bowl from the nearest cupboard.  Ignoring the blood spattered all over and now soaking into his jeans, he repeated the procedure for her other wrist.  

            Then he called Faust VIII and asked him tersely to come over as quickly as possible, reasoning that he was a doctor.  Besides, he really didn't want to turn Anna over to the hands of strangers if he didn't have to, no matter how professional they were.  Faust arrived shortly, much to Yoh's relief.  

            The doctor, however, barely recognized the boy who answered his knock.  Yoh's jeans were blood-soaked in irregular patches.  The scarlet liquid was spattered all over his face, coagulating on his hands and streaked up his arms.  His narrow, still boyish chest was bare, covered only in a sheer of frigid sweat.  His face was pale, and glistening tears of fear had gathered at the corners of his dark, clear eyes.  

            He didn't speak.  Instead, he led the doctor to the kitchen where Anna lay.  The blood was smeared all over, though Yoh had obviously made an effort to mop some of it up.  

            The boy didn't catch the look of reminiscence that crossed Faust's face.  The scene was too similar.  He remembered so well the scene of a woman lying in her own blood, deaf to the calls of her loved one.  Only, this time, the death was apparently no freak of fate.  It seemed intentional.  Not like Elisa…  He pushed away the memory with a shiver; the last thing he wanted was to draw parallels between his late wife and Anna right in front of Yoh.  The kid looked about to cry already.  

            The doctor examined her carefully.  Her breathing was still faint, but a little more noticeable, and the bleeding on her wrists was slowing.  "She really should go to a hospital," said Faust quietly.  "I could save her myself perhaps, but I don't have all the equipment should we find complications."

            "She's gonna die?" asked Yoh quietly.

            A silence.

            "No," said Faust finally.  "She's going to live.  You did the right thing to try and stop the bleeding.  Let's move her to someplace more comfortable so we can have her drink something.  It'll be important to replenish her fluids.  Do you have a bed or something that's okay to get blood on?"

            "The beds are upstairs, but we can put towels and blankets on the living room floor.  They're in the cupboard near the bathroom."  Yoh knelt beside Anna, putting a gentle arm around her.

            "Maybe I should carry her," said Faust gently, putting a hand on the boy's shoulder.

            "No," said Yoh stubbornly.  "She's _my_ fiancée.  And all her training wasn't for nothing; I know I'm strong enough."

            So the doctor found the towels and blankets and watched as Yoh carried Anna to the living room.  There was something about the careful way the he held her that was almost tragic.  Faust walked up quietly and draped Anna's arms around Yoh's shoulders.  "Best to keep her wrists elevated," he said with an almost smile in answer to the questioning blush that resulted.  

            "I just don't get it."

            Faust looked up to see Yoh walk into the room with a large pitcher of water.  "Don't get what?"

            "I don't get why…why she would…" He looked at Anna as he poured some water.  Hurt glimmered in his eyes.  "It's kinda funny, though, she had a bowl to catch the blood so it wouldn't make a mess.  It got knocked over when she passed out, but just that she tried…" He attempted a smile.  "She does those things, almost like she cares about leaving unnecessary work for me.  And yet, she was ready to just abandon me."  He stopped abruptly and blinked a few times.  "But why?"

            Faust sighed and shook his head.  "I don't know either, Yoh.  Sometimes people just…" he paused, searching for the word "…don't want to go on living, I guess.  Had she said or acted in any way particular that might indicate such feelings?"

            Yoh was quiet, contemplating the glass of water in his hand.  "I dunno.  Not really different, I guess.  She's always sorta like that."  He handed the glass to Faust.  "You wanna see if she'll drink any?  I'm afraid if I try, I'll make her choke, but she needs something."

            The doctor took the glass and gently supported Anna so that she was in a more upright position.

            Yoh gave a sudden small cry, startling Faust and causing half of the water to splash down Anna's front.  

            "What is it?"

            "Her head…there's blood."

            "But there's blood all over, Yoh."

            "No…" He brushed her hair with his fingers.  "It looks almost like something hit her there."

            Faust examined the injury.  "You're right.  We definitely should get her to a hospital now.  I'm not sure how bad this is."

            "Okay," Yoh agreed absently, his eyes gleaming with a new idea.  "But…this means that…that this wasn't a suicide!  Someone knocked her out and tried to make it look like she had done it!  And…" his face darkened "whoever it was is still out there somewhere."

To be continued…

There you go, boiya.  You asked for a mystery.  ^_~  


	3. Investigations

Don't get spoiled now, I don't usually update this fast; I'm just trying to finish before I leave 'cause you people seem to like it.  ^_^  Anyway, I've never ever written mystery before, so hopefully it'll turn out okay.  And it's almost done!  (Short mystery.  :P)  Also, I forgot to add that I've been writing this between exams, half-stoned from lack of sleep.  So I apologize for the typos and plotholes that I didn't catch.  (I have another excuse too: I found an unfinished Hao/Anna in one of my files and I've been toying with that.  -_-  But y'all like YoNa, so I don't know if it'll go anywhere.)

            "A concussion, huh?" asked Horohoro, polishing his snowboard.

            "Yes, a concussion, baka," snapped Ren.  "If you would pay attention while I'm talking, you wouldn't have to ask five times what happened to Kyouyama.  But I forgot, you process things slower than everyone else anyway."

            "Haha.  I am _so_ flattered, Ren."

            "Is that _sarcasm_??  Don't try it Ainu, you'll hurt yourself with the thinking."

            WHAP.  

            Horohoro introduced Ren to the underside of his snowboard.  

            "Why you…" Ren snatched his glaive and swung at the blue-haired boy.            "Look," said the Chinese boy after a short scuffle that resulted in a few bruises each, "I've got an idea: how about you go and investigate what happened to Kyouyama and don't come back until you find out who did it."  He paused, looking thoughtful.  "On second thought, you stay right here.  _I'll_ investigate."

            "But then you get to be the hero!" protested Horohoro.  "No way, I'm gonna go; if you wanna come too, you'll be my subordinate."

            "So you'll pay me as an employee?"

            "…"

            "…"

            "Maybe we should go as equals."

            They arrived at the house in good shape, their bickering on the way having only come to blows once before they reached the door.  Yoh answered the door, his hair pulled back and a mop in his hand.  "Hey, guys, can I help you with something?"  He attempted his usual smile, but a little bit of sadness still lingered in the corners of his eyes.  "I'm just cleaning up the kitchen.  Anna comes home today, and I thought she wouldn't want to see the blood all over."

            "Oh no," gasped Ren, pushing suddenly past Yoh and racing toward the kitchen.

            Horohoro and Yoh exchanged confused glances and followed the same path to see what Ren was up to.  They found him in the kitchen doorway, a relieved look on his face.  "You didn't start yet."

            Yoh shook his head.  "No, and I really gotta get started, or I won't finish in time.  You wanna help?"

            Ren walked slowly along the perimeter of the room, studying the mess from every angle.  The blood had dried, and some of it was smeared from Yoh's first cleanup attempt two nights before.  The splash pattern was still obvious where the bowl had tipped, though.  A few footprints spotted their way back and forth from the door where Yoh had walked through the crimson puddle.  What interested Ren, though, were the small half-moon shaped crescents of blood, printed between the large blood splotch and the door.  They faded as they approached the exit, meaning that whoever or whatever had made them had been leaving the scene.  

            He pointed them out, expecting to be met with awe at his superior skills of observation.  Horohoro, however, brushed it off.  "I saw 'em too," he declared.  "But I don't think they mean anything."

            "They're not mine," said Yoh, bending down to get a closer look.  "I was barefoot."

            "How do we know they were footprints?" queried Horohoro.

            "What else would they be?  It comes in pairs like footprints, but they're way too small and shaped weird."

            "Um, really weird stilts?  I mean, they're narrow and all."

            Ren smacked Horohoro upside the head.  "Stilts??  Who would use stilts to come murder someone?"

            "A short person?"

            "Like who?"

            "Do we know any really short people?"

            There was a moment of silence before Yoh slammed the mop down resolutely.  "No!  I don't believe it!"

            "But Manta would make sense," said Ren thoughtfully.  "Maybe he felt ignored with all the time you've been spending with Anna, Yoh."

            "Manta hates blood," said Yoh bluntly.

            "Oh.  Right."

            "So maybe they're not stilts," admitted Horohoro, "but it was an ingenious idea, wasn't it?"

            "Maybe," agreed Yoh complacently.

            "Hey, do you still have the knife?" asked Ren.  "At least, I assume there was a knife around somewhere.  Or did something else make the cuts?"

            "Oh, yeah, there was a knife in the mess.  I still have it."

            "Great!  Where?"

            "In the drying rack by the sink with this morning's dishes."

            "YOU WASHED IT???"  Ren looked as if he didn't know whether to facefault or cry.  He was about ready to do both anyway.

            "Well, yeah, is that a problem?"

            "YES, IT'S A PROBLEM!  NOW WE CAN'T EVEN CHECK FOR FINGERPRINTS!!"

            "Hey, no need to yell, man," chided Horohoro.

            Yoh just cocked his head.  "I didn't even think of that.  And I was just wiping off the bowl too…"

            Ren sat down on the kitchen floor with an I'm-surrounded-by-idiots sigh.  And then something else caught his eye.  It was a small Lego brick on the floor, a bright red, cubic one.  "Look at that," he said quietly.

            "Cool," said Horohoro, picking it up.

            Ren smacked his forehead.  "You just ruined the fingerprints on that too!!"

            "Oh.  Oops."

            "I have to pick up Anna in two hours," said Yoh nervously, glancing at the clock on the wall.  "Are you guys gonna help me clean up or not?"

            "Hold on," said Ren, conveniently pulling a camera out of nowhere.  "If you're gonna clean this up, at least let me get some pictures for evidence."  He then proceeded to use an entire roll of film, after which he and Horohoro proceeded to actually help mop up the kitchen.  

            "Thanks guys," said Yoh, pulling on a clean shirt as he walked to his bike.  "I never would have made it in time."

            "No prob," grinned Horohoro.

            "Hey," said Ren, looking as if he had just gotten an idea, "can we stick around until you get back?  I want to ask Anna some questions."

            "Sure," agreed Yoh.  "You can hang around if you want, but I can't guarantee that Anna will really feel like talking."

            So Ren and Horohoro wandered into the living room to wait for Yoh's return.  Horohoro took a seat and practiced twiddling his thumbs, occasionally alternating direction just for kicks.  Ren pulled a book out of nowhere and settled down to read.  Horohoro noticed with dismay that it was titled _1003 Ways to Make an Ice Shaman Shut Up_, but decided to ignore it and hope that it was just some kind of joke.  

            About half an hour later, he perked up like a dog that has just heard a cat outside and ran to the window.  "They're coming!"

            Ren put his book away and walked serenely to join the Ainu.  Yoh was turning into the yard on the bike, Anna perched motionless on the handlebars.  Horohoro drew in his breath sharply.  "She looks awful," he murmured.

            His Chinese friend only nodded in reply.  Anna was frighteningly pale, nearly as white as the gauze that swathed her wrists.  She swayed slightly each time Yoh turned, no matter how gently he steered, looking nearly ready to lose her balance.  Horohoro and Ren hurried to the door to meet the arrivals, but stopped when they got a closer look.  

            The itako wasn't even walking, but instead allowed Yoh to carry her, cradled in his arms as they approached the house.  Such a show of weakness was almost unthinkable for someone like Anna.  Yoh caught Ren's eye and shook his head, indicating that his fiancée would most definitely not be answering questions any time soon.  The two investigator-wannabes nodded in agreement and left quietly.  

To be continued

Sorry, that was…uh…less serious on the most part, and a little rushed.  Blame my capricious mood swings and limited writing time.  


	4. The Suspects

Much much apologies.  I know how really rushed this is, but I'm leaving Tuesday, and I really wanted to finish this.  Maybe I'll rewrite it in August when I get back.  And thanks for all the reviews!  Oh, and for a general note: I forgot to say that I pretty much cut out the spirits because I find their personalities (or possible lack of them) difficult to grasp.  

Oh yeah!  I also got to see my first clips of the Shaman King anime yesterday!  ^_^  I'd only read a couple episodes of the first volume, some translations, and a bunch of spoilers up till then (not to mention fanfics.)  But it was soooooooo cool!!  Maybe I'll get to see a complete episode someday…

            "We are finding out who did _that_," declared Ren resolutely as he and Horohoro walked out into the sun.  "If anyone can break a spirit as strong as hers, I sure want to see them brought to justice."

            "Leaping to defend her, huh?" teased Horohoro, nudging his friend.

            "No," snapped Ren.  "This is serious.  If someone can take down Anna, we could all be in danger.  She's…" he paused, his pride struggling with truth "…she's pretty strong…for a _girl_, of course."

            Horohoro cleared his throat rather artificially.  "Of course, Ren."

            They walked in silence for a while in no particular direction; there didn't seem to be any place to really go.

            "I think whoever is guilty left in a hurry," said Horohoro suddenly.

            "Why?" asked Ren, to lazy to come up with some clever remark of ridicule.  

            "The bowl," said Horohoro.  "It got spilled.  Maybe the person knocked it over because they had to leave suddenly, like if they heard Yoh coming home."

            Ren looked thoughtful.  He hadn't counted on the Ainu actually coming up with any plausible ideas.  "It's…possible," he admitted.  "Maybe we should come up with a list of possible suspects and the reasons they might have for committing such a crime.  Then we can talk to each one individually unless we write them off beforehand."

            "Okay, first," said Horohoro, rummaging in his pockets for a piece of paper and a stub of pencil, "Bokutou no Ryu."

            "Why him?"

            "Think about it.  The bokutou would pack a pretty good concussion, wouldn't it?"

            "But why would he do something like that?"

            "Good question."  Horohoro stared off into space for a while, trying to think of a legitimate reason.  

            "Okay," said Ren after a moment of silence, "this is my take on it.  He's suffering from a bad case of rejection."

            "Neh?"

            "Well, I heard that when he first met Anna, he didn't realize she was already betrothed to Yoh."

            Horohoro's jaw dropped.  "He didn't!"

            "Yeah, basically he tried to hit on her and something about all his 'best place' junk and whatever.  Let's just say it didn't work."

            "I bet she was cruel."  

            Ren's voice dropped to a confidential whisper.  _"She insulted his hair."_

            "No!"

            Ren nodded.

            "How _awful!_  I mean, at least his is better looking than yours!"  Horohoro dodged a swipe of Ren's glaive just in time and ran off toward Ryu's house, laughing at his friend's irritation.  

            Ryu was in a good mood when they arrived at his house.  He invited them cheerily in.  Ren took one good look at the wallpaper and the various large posters of Elvis Presley along the walls and decided that his decorating ideas were from a completely different planet than Ryu's.  So he decided to get straight to the point and be done with it so they could leave.

            "Where were you two evenings ago?" he asked.

            Ryu sat down in a chair and motioned them to do the same as he searched his memory.  "I was…at home.  In front of the mirror."

            "The mirror?"

            "I was doing my hair.  I have to _work_ for a masterpiece like this, you know," he said, indicating his rather unique 'do.  

            "And for the rest of the evening?" prompted Ren.

            "It took all evening," said Ryu.  "It always does."

            "Hey, you know how that is," put in Horohoro.  "Ren, you spend _hours_ in front of the mirror making your spike perfect."

            "And you would know this how?" inquired the Chinese boy, his face turning an interesting shade of red.

            "Jun told me," replied the Ainu cheerfully.  "She says you're really cute, 'cause you comb your hair over and over again, and take half a bottle of gel at a time, and you talk to your reflection!  She says you tell yourself lotsa times how good-looking you are."

            "Really??" cried Ryu, sudden tears of elation streaming down his face.  "You too??  I thought I might be the only one!"

            Ren's face was not a mixture of red and magenta and violet, and he didn't seem to be able to say anything.

            Horohoro took over.  "So you don't know anything about what happened to Anna, then?"

            "No," said Ryu, looking puzzled.  "What happened?"

            "Someone knocked her out and tried to make it look like she committed suicide!  Yoh says he got there just in time!"

            Ryu stared.  "I didn't hear about that!  Aw, I guess this means they won't want to come over to dinner tonight…"

            "Probably not.  Well, thanks anyway; we can't really stay."

            "So soon?  I'll see you boys around, then."

            "It wasn't Ryu," said Ren matter-of-factly as they left (he seemed to have regained some of his dignity.)

            "Nah, he probably wouldn't have been able to think up something like that, anyway."

            "Probably not.  Besides, he sorta has a debt of honor to Kyouyama and Yoh after that Tokageroh incident."

            "Oh yeah.  Well, who's our next suspect?  What about Jun?"

            "My sister?"

            Horohoro wisely took a step back, seeing the murder in the Tao boy's eyes.  "Well, she _was_ defeated by Yoh with Anna's help…  Okay, okay!  I give!  It wasn't Jun!"

            "Good.  All Taos are far above such lowdown tricks, and don't you forget it.  Hey, look at the sun; it must be almost lunchtime.  Your house is closest.  Let's go."  
            "Okay.  We can come up with more suspects while we eat."

            They started off towards Horohoro's house when suddenly the Ainu stopped.  "What if it was Lyserg?"

            Ren raised an eyebrow.  "Lyserg?  What gives you that idea?"

            "Okay, well he's got that pendant thingy, right?"

            "Pendulum.  But yeah."

            "And, like, pendants usually go on necklaces.  And Anna always wears that necklace of blue beads.  You see the connection?"

            Ren resisted the urge to smack his forehead.  "That's it??'

            "Yeah.  The reasoning is so subtle, only a mastermind could possibly think of it!"

            "Subtle?  More like so idiotic, only someone like you could come up with it."

            "I resent that!"

            "I'm sure you do.  Come on, I'm hungry."

            Horohoro's house, thankfully, had much simpler décor inside, though his room was a disaster.  (Pilika made him pick it up some while she made lunch.)  "What do you keep all this around for?" queried Ren, picking up random objects off the floor.  "A good number of them are _toys_ too."

            "Not just toys," corrected Horohoro, grasping a wooden bat and taking a few practice swings, accidentally nearly hitting Ren.  "These are classic pastimes.  I mean, look at that.  I only started two days ago, when I got it."

            Ren looked up at the half-finished Lego fortress on its own shelf and rolled his eyes.  "I guess it's better than finding out you play hopscotch."

            "Was it you?" asked Horohoro suddenly.

            "Was what me?" replied Ren, thrown off by the non sequitur.  

            "Who tried to kill Anna."

            "Of course not!" he snapped.  "What gave you that idea?"

            "Well, you know, the knife, and then it struck me that the shape of the knife was a lot like your hair…"

            "And maybe," said Ren dryly, "it was the ice shaman because, like him, this investigation is starting to seem like a complete waste of time."

            "Yeah!" exclaimed Horohoro.  "I never even thought of tha – hey, wait a minute!"

            But Ren was already out the door and heading toward the table for lunch.  

            The two called a temporary truce so as not to waste any food should they get into another squabble.  "Did you ever wonder," said Ren softly, taking a sip of milk, "if maybe it was Pilika?"

            "No.  Why?"

            "Well, she trains you like Anna trains Yoh.  Maybe she viewed Kyouyama as kind of a rival.  It would make sense to pick her off."

            Horohoro scratched his chin and then shook his head.  "Nah, she was home all evening two nights ago.  It couldn't have been her.  Hey, I got an idea!"

            "Well…?"

            "Why don't we ask the neighbors if they saw anyone go in or out?"

            Ren blinked.  That was two good ideas Horohoro had come up with in one day.  "Okay…"

*

            A few miles away, Lyserg, who had heard of the whole incident from Ryu, was surfing the net when he came across a site called FanFiction.net.  Skimming through some of the writing, his eyes widened.  Why hadn't he thought of that before?

*

            It was the middle of the afternoon, and Yoh was completely unsure of what to do.  Sitting down to peel an orange, he puzzled over Anna's strange change in behavior.  Ever since she had come home, she had lain quietly in bed.  Once or twice, he had heard her murmur, "I almost died."  But there was nothing more; she offered no clues.  

            Suddenly, the front door burst open to reveal a triumphant Ren and Horohoro.  "We know who it was!" announced Horohoro.

            "And we have evidence to prove it!"

            "Who was it?" asked Yoh.

            Ren pulled someone into view from around the doorpost, and Yoh wondered if the world was going to end.  _"Tamao??"_

Heh…to be continued…


	5. Exoneration, Accusation, Consolation, Re...

Sorry, ff.net wouldn't let me upload _anything_, so my not-quite-yami (if you don't know Yu-Gi-Oh, ignore the term) was gracious enough to upload it for me. Everybody say thank you to her! ^_^ I'm not perfectly happy with this chapter, but I don't have time to rewrite, but I hope you all get the gist of it anyway. 

Tamao turned white and then settled on an admirable shade of pink. "I…I'm sorry…"

"You actually did it??"

The poor girl looked terribly flustered. "Did what? I'm sorry, I was going to say that I don't understand what's going on."

Yoh looked slightly relieved, but still nonplussed. "Explain, please, Ren."

"Oh, sure," sniffed Horohoro indignantly. "Ask _him_ to explain, not me!"

Ren ignored the comment and stepped forward. "Two days ago, the neighbors said they thought they saw a pink-haired girl enter your house a little more than an hour and a half after you left. They also said she departed hurriedly shortly after."

Tamao had suddenly turned paper white.

"Around eight o'clock," continued Ren mercilessly, "you stopped by Horohoro's house, Tamao."

She nodded, still pale.

"You dropped off a basketful of, well, toys." He winced slightly, as if it should be beneath anyone his age to find toys entertaining.

"Yeah!" grinned Horohoro. "I asked her to. There was some pretty good stuff in there too."

"Among them were a baseball bat and a semi-complex building set. A _Lego_ building set. Judging by the time, that was after Tamao stopped by Yoh and Anna's home."

Yoh scratched his head. "I'm not seeing how this is fitting together, if you'll forgive me, Ren."

The Tao boy looked as if he was feeling very superior. "Tamao knocked Anna out with the baseball bat, slashed her wrists and left shortly after. The Lego block fell out of her bag when she stopped by. It also makes sense to have the bowl to catch the blood because Tamao helps with the housecleaning sometimes. She would want to avoid making a mess as much as possible."

Yoh looked stricken. Slowly, he stood and walked toward Tamao, who was trembling like a child's paper kite on a windy day. "He's accusing you of attempted murder, Tamao-chan," he said softly. "I want to hear _you_ talk."

Reluctantly, she met his gaze. A dead Anna would have removed a major obstacle to the young shaman's heart, she knew, but thoughts like those frightened her when they appeared in her head. "Is she dead?" asked Tamao, carefully keeping her voice neutral. 

"No," said Yoh. "Anna will be fine."

Relief washed visibly over Tamao's features. "I…I was afraid…"

"But did you try to kill Anna or not?" interrupted Horohoro.

Tamao shook her head. "No, I didn't. I could have told you that before if you had asked directly."

"Investigations require detailed interrogations," said Ren defensively.

"I'd like more explanation, though," said Yoh. "I don't understand how the evidence can match up yet have such inconclusive results."

Tamao nodded. "I stopped by to see if Anna wanted help with anything before I dropped off Horohoro's stuff. I found her unconscious on the kitchen floor, and…I guess the blood scared me. I dropped my bag, and I must have dropped the Lego piece then." She looked at the faces around her, a sorrowful guilt on her own countenance. "I…I panicked and ran away. I know I should've called for help or something, but I was just too upset. I…" Her large eyes filled with tears "I'm so sorry, Yoh-san! I shouldn't have run! Anna-san would call me a coward and I…" She dissolved completely. All three boys felt decidedly uncomfortable in the presence of the weeping girl, and Horohoro put an awkward arm around her shoulders.

"It's okay," said Yoh gently. "I got help for her, and she's doing well. Everything's gonna be all right, Tamao-chan."

The young girl wiped her eyes. "I wanted to see if she was okay, but I felt bad for not…"

"Don't worry," said Horohoro. "We understand."

"What I'm wondering," put in Ren, his golden eyes still narrow, "is how those weird prints fit in."

"What prints?" asked Tamao with a slight hiccup as her crying subsided.

Ren pulled the photos he had taken out of his pocket. He had had them developed at a one-hour-photo place while he and Horohoro had questioned the neighbors. Tamao studied the crescent-shaped prints and then handed the photos back to Ren. "I think those are mine."

"Um…how?"

"I stepped in the blood by accident, just my toes," she said. "I wiped it off as soon as I realized with my handkerchief, but I wasn't in the mindset to do a thorough job…"

"I get it," said Horohoro. "You must have missed some around the edge of your big toe or something, leaving rounded prints when you left."

She nodded.

"Well," said Ren, raising an eyebrow. "That wasn't exactly the answer I was expecting…but I guess it works…" He sighed dejectedly. "But now there's no unexplained clues left to follow. I don't know how we'll find out who's guilty!"

The door burst open suddenly, causing the group of four to turn. Lyserg was standing in the doorway, quite out of breath. "The reviewers are right!" he gasped out.

"Reviewers?" questioned Yoh.

"What's a reviewer?" asked Horohoro.

"What are you talking about?" demanded Ren.

"Never mind," said Lyserg, "but they say it was Hao that tried to kill Anna!"

Silence.

"Have they been spying on us?" asked Ren, his eyes darting about in sudden paranoia.

"But Hao _wanted_ Anna," said Yoh.

"You're just anti-Hao all around," said Horohoro, obviously unimpressed.

Tamao didn't really have anything to say.

"But it really fits!" exclaimed Lyserg. "He wanted Anna, but he couldn't have her because of Yoh. So he tried to kill her!"

"I get it," said Ren, "the classic if-I-can't-have-her-no-one-can approach."

"Right. _And_, the Lego block definitely points to Hao."

"But we already cleared tha – wait a minute…how did you know about the Lego block?"

"The reviewers made mention of that too."

"They _have_ been spying on us!" exclaimed Ren, pulling out his glaive.

"Ah!" cried Lyserg suddenly, "maybe they're associated with Hao, 'cause he can have 

Opacho spy on people!"

"But they're _accusing_ Hao."

"Oh. Right."

Anna, listening unseen from the top of the stairs, turned away and glided through the shadows to her darkened room. Sitting in the middle of the floor, she drew her knees up to her chest and watched a faint light stream in where she had left the door ajar. How could she tell them now?

She closed her eyes, the blurred memories rushing unbidden through her head.

She recalled a feeling of emptiness, with nothing left to live for. The knife had been on an impulse, an outlet of escape at the apex of depression. Watching the blood had been frighteningly satisfying as she leaned on the low table and held her wrists over the bowl. And why? Anna really didn't think anyone cared. What with her cold personality and ruthless actions, how could they? 

And then something had happened that she hadn't planned. Just as the world was beginning to fade and swirl, she heard the front door open and close. Her first thought was that Yoh had come home too early, or that she had misjudged the timing. She lurched to her feet, barely noticing as she accidentally swept the blood-filled bowl to the floor. But it was too late for her to stand; her legs betrayed her, weakened by blood loss, and she fell. A sudden pain shot through her head as it connected with the corner of the table, an instant before she met the floor. As her vision faded, she heard footsteps approaching. They stopped and someone – Tamao? – gasped in surprise and horror, but Anna knew no more. 

She had awoken in the hospital with her wrists on fire despite their soft bandages. What hurt more, though, was the incredible sense of failure. How could she, Kyouyama Anna, fail at something as simple as suicide? Perhaps it was better to let them all think it was Hao's fault; it would hurt Yoh to no end to find out she had wanted to die…perhaps even more than it hurt her to know she could not. 

The beam of light from the door grew wider and then was blocked almost completely. She looked up to see Yoh silhouetted in the doorway, his usually carefree face gentle with worry. "Anna?"

She turned away, her bandaged hands drooping uselessly at her sides. 

"You heard everything, didn't you?"

She nodded slowly.

"Were we right? Was it Hao?"

Silence.

He sighed. "It's okay. You don't have to tell me anything. We'll protect you, you know," he said gently, putting a hand on her thin shoulder.

She whirled around and slapped him for touching her, but stopped suddenly with a gasp of pain. The impact had sent ripples of pain up her injured arm, and she drew back, cradling it against her body, willing the throbbing to subside.

"Don't do that," said Yoh gently, rubbing his cheek. "You'll hurt yourself more."

"Not that you would care," she snapped through gritted teeth.

"That's not true." He smiled softly. "You'd be surprised how many people actually do."

Downstairs, Lyserg, Ren, and Horohoro were engaged in a furious argument over reviewers and Hao and privacy policies. The Ainu stopped shouting suddenly and looked about. "Eh? Where'd Yoh go?"

The others quieted as well and glanced around. "I dunno," said Ren.

"He went upstairs," said Tamao shyly.

"Upstairs? What's he doing up there?" asked Horohoro, heading for the stairs.

"Wait!" she said suddenly, "don't go. Everything's going to be fine."

"How can you tell?" asked Ren.

"I just sort of sensed it."

Unaware of the turmoil a floor below, Yoh dared to brush the tips of his fingers through Anna's hair. She suddenly gripped his shirt collar, though he could see her face turn white at the pain the tension in her hand caused. "You're mocking me."

He shook his head slowly. "When did I ever mock you?"

Sometimes it feels like all of life mocks me. She said nothing out loud, though her head drooped forward until he could not see her eyes. Then something wet dropped onto his arm. Anna bit her lip in dismay as tear after scalding tear slid from her eyes and down her face. This was not how it was supposed to be. She was not ever supposed to cry in front of anyone, let alone Yoh. 

It occurred to him that at this point, he was supposed to put his arms around her and hold her close, but that was in movies and anime, and the characters all seemed so much older. So he tolerated her forehead resting on his shoulder and put one loose arm around her in compromise. "It's okay," he whispered, not sure of what else to do.

"No, it's not," she retorted, fighting the tears.

"Then," he said thoughtfully, "we'll make it okay…together…'cause just one person can't."

Neither noticed Horohoro standing outside the door, watching silently. "Aw, man," he grumbled under his breath, "I've _got_ to get myself a girlfriend." At that point, though, Ren came by and found him eavesdropping, so he didn't get to hear any more.

Because of Ren's intervention, no one ever found out what else Yoh said. Whatever happened, Anna recovered slowly but surely afterward, though the thin scars on her wrists never quite disappeared. Everyone knew she was back to normal when she began making Yoh train again, though he never did leave her alone at home for more than an hour. 

As it was, she didn't seem to mind.

Owari.

Oh, and cookies for all my reviewers! And for anyone who read and didn't review too, just 'cause you read. ^_^ 

Ja!


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